10 Part Time Jobs with High Pay

I’ve written often about the importance of creating multiple income streams as a way of dealing with stagnant wages, paying off debt, increasing retirement savings, and supplementing retirement or business income. One of the best ways to do this is with a part-time job, but the limitation is that most part-time jobs pay only minimum wage. The “secret” is to find part-time jobs with high pay.

There are part-time jobs that pay above minimum wage, some well above, and they merit consideration. Below is a list of ten such high-paying part-time jobs. (All wage information is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).)

Ten part-time jobs with high pay

Each has its own qualifications but these are flexible jobs in regard to schedule and responsibilities. See if you can work one or more around your own schedule and circumstances.

1. Servers in high end restaurants

The BLS reports a median wage of $8.93 per hour for servers, but that includes employment across an incredibly wide range of establishments. If you’re working at a high end restaurant, you can earn considerably more. At some restaurants a good server can easily earn $200 or more during a single weekend shift. Choosing the restaurant carefully is the key. There are no formal qualifications.

2. Fitness instructor

Not only does this job pay well above the minimum wage, but it’s also one of the fastest growing occupations out there. An aging population with a greater need for improved fitness is contributing to that growth. Fitness instructors are usually self-employed but work through health clubs, offering their services to the club’s clientele.

Median wage $14.92 per hour and qualifications can vary widely. Most require certification, but how much training and experience that entails depends on the state your in as well as the specific area of fitness you’ll offer.

3. Substitute teacher

This is one of the most flexible jobs there is. While you’ll generally work full days with regular hours, you can choose how many (or how few) of those days you want to work. The median wage $14.08, and usually requires a bachelor’s degree and a state issued substitute teachers certification.

4. Pharmacy technician

One of the best aspects of this job is that there are pharmacies virtually anywhere there are people, and that means that you can get a job anywhere you live or choose to live.

Median wage is $11.49 per hour, and while requirements vary from state to state, you’re usually required to have a high school diploma and completion of a technical training program.

5. Tutoring

This is one of the most flexible jobs you can get because you can work it almost entirely around your own schedule. Tutoring is the least formal part-time jobs on this list, mainly because it isn’t a job as much as a side business, and you generally sell your services direct to the client. Most of us think of tutors in connection with student test preparation, but the possibilities are nearly endless. You can teach English as a second language, adult writing skills, computer applications or just about any subject you can think of.

The median hourly wage $22.77, but the range is pretty wide. We recently paid a tutor $30 per hour for math instruction for one of our kids, and that was at the lower end of the local scale.

6. Bank teller

The median wage $11.82 per hour, and it has the added benefit that you have no late nights, and only light work on weekends (typically Saturday mornings and maybe early afternoons). Since banks are everywhere, teller jobs are everywhere.

Typical qualifications include a high school diploma and in house training that generally lasts about a month.

7. Dental assistant

Median wage $16.42 per hour, and qualifications vary from state to state. Some states have no formal requirements, others require completion of an accredited program and passing an exam.

Like most of the part-time jobs on this list, dental assistants are needed everywhere, and have the added benefit that you generally don’t work nights and weekends.

8. Bartending

The median hourly wage is $9.06, but just like servers, you can make much more in higher end establishments. Training is on the job and there are no educational requirements. Since this is primarily an evening and weekend job, it’s a good part-time job to have if you need to keep your days free for a day job or business.

9. Bookkeeping

Many small businesses have neither the need nor the budget for a full time bookkeeper and hire a part-timer instead. Jobs are available in diverse industries and the median wage is $16.70 per hour. There are no formal education requirements to be a bookkeeper – it’s mostly learning on the job. You need to have basic math skills, and understanding of financial spreadsheets and bookkeeping software.

10. School bus drivers

Few people think of this job when it comes to part-time situations, but it can be one of the most lucrative. Not only is the pay well above minimum wage (with a median rate of $14.02 per hour) but it can also come with benefits such as health insurance. This is one of the least flexible jobs because it requires more rigid hours than most part-time jobs, but you’ll have summers and all holidays off.

There are generally no special requirements for a school bus driver, other than a clean driving record.

Bonus: Creating your own side gig

If the idea of holding a job doesn’t appeal to you, you can also consider doing something that’s more entrepreneurial in nature. I’m doing that with freelance blog writing. Not only can you make more money than you can with a part-time job, but you can also do it from the comfort of your own home, and increase your income as you’re motivated to do it.

Whether you do so with a part-time job or with a part-time business, adding an extra income stream can solve a lot of financial problems, and open up new opportunities.

What are you doing to earn extra money? Have you tried any of these jobs?

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